ANALYSIS of "Let It Go" from Frozen
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- Опубліковано 9 вер 2024
- Welcome back to MUSIC THEATRE THEORY!! This week, we're analyzing the song that made Frozen the #1 most successful animated movie franchise of all time -- "Let it Go."
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Hi, wall of comment, sorry. TLDR: I think Let It Go is in 4 flats all the way through, with the verses in F minor and only the choruses in Ab major. The middle bits are of dubious tonicity and mode.
I’ve recently got into music theory YT (having never actually studied music) and I searched to see if there was a video about the key change in Let It Go, which is how I found your channel. Great video, and I love that you play and sing to demonstrate your points!
I saw the video thumbnail and thought “Yeah, I have noticed the key change.” But then you pointed out a key change indication I never did notice. So thanks for that. I think your take on it is interesting, and the comment above about maybe Eb mixolydian. I’ll get back to that part.
What might be useful is if I give the chords from the sheet music I’ve seen, which is called Let It Go (Movie Version) and is arranged for voice and piano. The chords are:
Intro, 8 bars:
Fm, Dbmaj7(no 3), Ebsus2, Bbsus4 then Bbm in the same bar - all twice
Verse 1, 16 bars:
Fm, Dbmaj7, Eb, Bbsus4 then Bbm in one bar
Fm, Dbmaj7, Eb, Bbsus4 then Bb in one bar
Fm, Dbmaj7, Eb, Bbsus4 then Bbm in one bar
Fm, Eb, Bbsus4, Bb
Pre-Chorus 1, 10 bars:
Eb, Eb, Db, Db
Eb, Eb, Db, Db, Db, Db
Chorus 1, 16 bars:
Ab, Eb, Fm, Db - all three times
Cm, Cb, Db, Db
Link, 2 bars:
Ab, Eb/G
Verse 2, 8 bars:
Fm, Db, Eb, Bbm
Fm, Eb, Bbsus4, Bb
Pre-chorus 2, 9 bars:
(Same as pre-chorus 1 omitting last Db)
Chorus 2, 14 bars:
Ab, Eb, Fm, Dbsus2
Ab, EWb, Fm, Db - all twice
Cm, Cb
Bridge, 21 bars:
Db5 for 12 bars
Eb5 for 4 bars
F, Dbmaj7, Eb, Ebm, Db
Chorus 3, 19 bars,
First 12 bars same as Chorus 2 then
Dbm, Cm, Cb, Cb
Dbsus2, Dbsus2, then…
the last bar doesn’t have a different chord notation but all the previous notes are held and it gains the F in the top voice. If you hear the F filling in the major third then it turns Dbsus2 into Dbadd9. But you could just read the high F as a final piano melody note and leaving the accompaniment still hanging on Dbsus2. (I tried thinking of it as making an F chord to resolve to a tonic, but there’s no 5th for that and the Db would have to be, like, an add13 in the bass and that would be weird right?)
Anyway, so I had been expecting you to talk about the relative minor at the start and was surprised you didn’t mention it, then surprised again when you threw it in right at the end.
If the whole piece is in A major, then the main chord progression in the intro and verse is I think vi-IV-V-ii and the actual tonic chord is delayed until bar 35.
But if the intro and verse is in F minor then the progression is i-bVI-bVII-iv. I don’t think that’s a classic progression like the Axis loop of the chorus, but it does at least have a tonic at the start of each phrase, I think the flat VI and flat VII chords are pretty well used around minor tonics, and iv-i is a way to return home.
Leaving aside the bridge for now, also notice that the lead-in to the chorus has the vocal melody going F G Ab on ‘Let it go.’ So the title/catchiest lyrical motif of the song signals the move of the tonic from F to Ab, and the quality of the key from minor to major, which goes with the tone of the lyrics (comparing the first verse with the chorus) and the main storytelling job of the whole number within Elsa’s arc.
And the tonicity of the first verse is established also by the dramatic downward fall of the vocal melody to the low F on ‘footprint to be seen’ and ‘heaven knows I tried’ which both end melodic phrases, making F sound like a home note and underlining the negative lyrics with minor key quality. The second verse also ends on an F, though an octave higher and over a borrowed major chord, with a different mood.
On whether the key signature is ever 3 flats, I don’t think so. I think the only D naturals are in the verses, when every second go round the chord loop ends with the borrowed Bb major IV rather than the diatonic minor iv chord.
The pre-choruses and the bridge are full of Db chords. So I think they’re definitely in the 4 flats palette. As someone said they could be in Eb Mixolydian (or I guess Db Lydian, but Db is weak in the melody and Eb is hit strongly a couple of times).
I’m more inclined to see them as less clear about their tonic or mode. The Eb and Db chords are the bVI and bVII chords from the minor-key verse loop, but we’ve lost the minor tonic and the iv or IV chord that could set up a plagal cadence down to it. The Db and Eb *can* be read as the IV and V chords of the Ab major scale, but that’s a bit of a stretch the first time round, when there hasn’t been any Ab chord yet. Also F is in a couple of strong positions in the melody while Ab is only hit once, in a weak position with the end of the phrase falling back to G. Perhaps you can read the unresolved repetition of the Eb chord as hinting at the potential authentic cadence to Ab and therefore the major key? But it isn’t delivered until the chorus comes in.
I think unresolved Ab major could be a good way of hearing the more positive second pre-chorus, after Ab has been used as the melodic and harmonic tonic in the first chorus, making the pre-chorus into a long tease between the more upbeat F minor of verse 2 and the return of the clear Ab major in chorus 2. Especially at the end of the second pre-chorus the vocal melody builds up to a very strong Ab, running with anticipation into the key confirmation instead of stumbling into it like the first one.
Somewhat similarly the bridge. It follows directly from the Ab major chorus and it hits a couple of strong phrase-ending Abs. When it throws in an F chord towards the end, it’s the major VI.
Anyway, I did find it an eye-opener that you noticed the Bb chords introducing both pre-choruses are borrowed major chords. I see how that does suggest in that moment that the piece could be changing key to Eb major. Although I don’t think it does change key, the hint of it might (first time) be a deliberate fake-out. It would increase the mood of uncertainty and shaky footing in the first pre-chorus, which I think it what that passage is all about. Introspection, wavering of mood and potential to go in different directions.
I do also think you’re absolutely right to hear the reminder of the minor key in the final F. In the movie, IIRC, it comes after she has shut the door behind her against the world, leaving only the audience outside to hear the F as a hint of the trouble she’s left behind in Arendelle, which she is blotting out of her awareness.
Wow a very thorough analysis. I didn't notice the key change in the pre-chorus since Eb and Db major chords are diatonic with Fm. But when I hear it again I definitely got a strong feeling of Eb mixolydian in the line "dont let them in, dont let them see". And the mixolydian build-up for the eventually chorus makes perfect sense for the triumph feeling.
I searched for this video as I was interested in the theory behind the B major chord. Great to see interesting discussions in the comment section:)
It's been brought to my attention over on r/musictheory, with a link to Hook Theory, that the bridge is in none of the above keys. I wasn't previously paying attention to the sudden proliferation of accidentals here.
Hook Theory has the first instrumental and the first two lines of the vocal bridge in C# Mixolydian. (My sheet music spells the whole thing with flats so I'm going to say Db. Hook Theory is contributor-transcribed section by section so I think someone has looked at the passage in isolation and gone with sharps rather than flats, but since the piece as a whole is full of flats I think it's better to stick with that spelling.)
The tonal centre of that section clearly is Db - there are I think 12 bars all over a Db5 chord. The Gs are all flat, the perfect fourth, so we're not really in four flats any more, if you were to give this section its own key signature.
The question is what mode (if any). There are no double flats so it isn't Phrygian or Aeolian, which would have Bbb the minor 6th and as I say the Gs are flat so it isn't Lydian. Which leaves (if we're in a mode) Dorian, Mixolydian or Ionian. The diagnostic notes are therefore the 3rd F and the 7th C, and they're both mixed - sometimes natural and sometimes flat. Hook Theory as I say puts it in mixolydian, which would mean F natural and Cb. I don't think I would be that specific. There are more F naturals, but they're all in relatively weak rhythmic positions - at most a syncopated upbeat, or otherwise the last 8th/16th of a straight run, before the next beat. The Fbs hit straight downbeats. But I'm not saying it's in minor either - the harmonic elements of the piano (in the arrangement I have) hammer Db and Ab, avoiding the third altogether - the chord is printed as Db5. And there are all those F naturals. A bit similarly, there's a real mix of Cb and C, with flats on straight beats. For me it all adds up to a section without a really precise mode.
The next section modulates up a gear to Eb and I think (I haven't yet gone through this note by note) basically repeats part of the Db section but up a tone and shorter - there are four bars of Eb5.
And then up another tone to F with a chord progression similar to the verse (F, Dbmaj7, Eb, Bbm, Db). Hook theory says F minor which fits most of it, except in my sheet music the one F chord is F major. I'd be interested to know if anyone with a good ear can confirm. Major would certainly fit with the lyric ("I'm never going back"), because F minor would be literally going back to the opening chord of the piece / tonic of verse 1.
So overall the function of the bridge is to depart tonally from the chorus to a place from which there can be two successive upward, energy-raising key changes back to the F key of the verse and set up the final boost up to the relative major chorus again. And it so happens that the two lower steps of the bridge are Db and Eb, and the precise mode/tonality is unclear. So it's kind of the pre-chorus over again, but much more upward this time.
(BTW, now I'm looking closely at this section, I originally misread the chord progression here for my original comment which I now can't edit. Ebm towards the end of the bridge should be Bbm.)
Isn't the chord progression at the start - F Db Eb Bb - I VI VII iv not I bVI bVII iv since the notes in F minor and F G Ab Bb C Db Eb F?
I had completely forgotten about the New Years performance of let it go. Tragic day
I love how the bar at the bottom of the video lines up perfectly with the keyboard.
Marvellous analysis. Subbed!
Your channel is AWESOME!! Cant wait to see more of your videos :)
Looking at things outside of the music itself, this shows the problem with making a musical piece that doesn't fit its message. This was supposed to be a villain song, showing Elsa giving up on her responsibilities and embracing the worst parts of her self. They wrote it in a way that held such an uplifting sound that they couldn't leave Elsa a villain. Problem is, that's what she was written to be and what this song confirmed her to be, and they couldn't come up with a way to properly change it, so they just decided to BS some other "villain" and rely on the beautiful song to convince us that a woman running from her responsibilities, blaming her parents for her own problems and declaring the world at fault for not letting her use powers that tend to destroy far more easily than they create is a perfect heroine and not just a Disney Princess, but a Disney QUEEN.
Um I don’t think that’s what happened. She was intended to be the villain. But as they write let it go they realized that they sympathized with her more than not so they rewrote the story to fit more with the time of let it go. Elsa isn’t blaming her parents at all. She’s discovering what it feels like to finally be herself. And she had some catastrophic growing pains but eventually she learned to balance her individuality and responsibility which is super hard when you grow up repressed your entire life and it all just bursts open
@@carlosalejandroalvarenga4913 Listen to the song again, all the things she's saying fit too well as things her parents told her. Don't let them see, conceal it, don't feel. This sounds, to me at least, far too much like she's listing out the things her parents always told her as if they were doing something wrong by basically trying to help her avoid killing people. And then she declares let it go, stop caring and let the storm rage on, something that, again, requires either indifference or willful ignorance of the consequences of her powers. They TRIED to rewrite the story to better fit with the song, but it didn't work in my opinion, not by any stretch. To me, music aside, this was the song of a stupid brat running away from her problems, declaring that other people, including her parents, are the problem and she should just be able to do whatever the heck she wants, again ignoring the consequences. And the rest is her being forced to take the first little step to growing up in realizing that yeah, like it or not, her actions do have consequences and in this case those consequences are deadly, leading to her finally reaching a point where she has a bit of control. This's also why I actually liked Frozen 2, it made her grow up to an extent. She actually seeks a purpose and seeks her place as the core of the story, rather than just running from her problems and then getting all excited because she finally figured out how to make fairly sure people wouldn't die.
Also you should go and see the parody version of let it go it’s called let it consume
Wonderful video, as always!
Great video! Could you analyse more Frozen songs?
Thank you it helped me with my homework 😊
Not a music theory expert but - I think it’s in A-flat major the whole time, it’s just waiting for the first chorus to resolve to the tonic.
First verse repeats this pattern:
vi-IV-V-ii
vi-IV-V-VofV tease
I say tease because that major Bb keeps going back to the vi, when your ear wants it to go to the V!
It finally delivers on this promise in the transition to the prechorus! (Heaven knows I tried - don’t let them I) a proper VofV -> V.
Then we have V-IV-V-IV for the prechorus
And at laaast “let it go” let’s us resolve to the tonic!
Thematically it’s a perfect fit. The first verse is mostly defeat, and let it go is the solution. An alternative perspective that resolves the tension - both musically and in her current situation.
Further supporting this is the fact that the vi-IV-V-ii comes back in verse 2. But now it’s bouncier and you have the A flat key context established, so it all feels more comfortable… which again very thematically fitting :)
Eh didn’t meant to sojnd so definitive - what I really mean is - is this another way to look at it rather than key hopping?
@@rohitcrasta2836 Yeah I think your explanation is better. As someone else said above, if this was a key change, it would be to Eb mixolydian, which would be strange
In the pre-chorus where you mention it modulates to Eb major - the second chord is still a Db meaning the only possible modulation would be to Eb mixolydian, which I don't think is right. In my opinion the Bb is just a secondary dominant leading to Eb, but not necessarily a modulation - how do you feel about that? I'm writing an assignment about the song, and I'm just in doubt what the correct answer is) greetings from Denmark
I'm wondering the same thing 6 months later, so if you found an answer I would love to hear about it
Hi Mateo! Thanks for your very good insight here. I am wondering how you usually get the score/sheet music from? I often see simplified or re-arranged ones available.
So glad I found your channel. And subscribed. Do you know if this story is true? The "Let It Go" demo produced by the composers survives almost intact in the released recording. Which doesn't happen often in any part of the music industry. Cheers, Mateo.
This video really helped me learn exactly how to sing the song. I have the confidence to be able to do it (even though I am a guy who most likely can't hit all the notes but oh well lol). I have a tv show idea inspired by me and my account called, "Growing Up With Disney" where Disney songs like this are sang, and I hope someday I will be able to sing it (I just have to stop being lazy with this account and actually post consistently)
In her defense, that was probably Idina's worst performance of that Eb5 😅 She does struggle with it live, but she has performed it better (in times where she did sing in the original key)
Pov : your showing the analysis of the song , but ended up singing
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I figure the key already changes before the pre chorus.
At 2:24, you're playing Asus4 followed by Am, which is correct, but at 2:30 you're clearly playing a D natural, meaning you already changed keys for a short period
Good observation - I would say it’s not so much a “key change” as it is an “accidental,” which is when there’s just one note outside the key for a brief moment, before returning to the key. That D natural just adds a bit of extra colour for one moment, and then it’s back to D flat in the next bar, and it sounds like Ab is still the center of the key. It only changes “tonal centers,” to my ear, on the prechorus - but then again, there isn’t really one objectively right answer!
I’d love to hear your thoughts on frozen metal cover by skar productions!
Poor guy :-D :-D Haha, that was mean! hahaha! (edit: the husband)